


Falling Forward

by orphan_account



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: F/M, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-30
Updated: 2017-05-30
Packaged: 2018-11-06 18:33:36
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,017
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11041884
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Keith has never been much of a flirter-- in fact, he's quite the opposite.  But when he meets an unlikely companion, he's thrown into a whirlwind of chaos he's never felt before.





	Falling Forward

Keith tapped his foot impatiently as he sat awkwardly on the park bench.  He’d much rather be at home in his bed, but somehow he found himself sitting in the park once again.  It seemed that this past week, Keith had been coming to the park almost religiously.  He kept telling himself he was only there because he needed fresh air and exercise, but he knew better.  He was visiting every day in hopes of running into that handsome stranger once more.  He was tall, buff, and had beautiful piercing eyes; Keith had seen him once before about a week prior at this exact bench, only briefly, but he was entranced.  He felt the need to see him again.

Keith checked his wristwatch, then sat back on the bench, running a hand through his dark hair.  Of course he wouldn’t run into this man again—and even if he did, what did he expect himself to say?  That he thought he was attractive and felt the need to stalk him for a week?

“Stupid,” Keith muttered to himself, crossing a leg across his lap.

“Who is?” came a voice to his left, and Keith turned in surprise.  A man about his age was sliding onto the opposite end of the bench next to him.  He flashed Keith a smile, leaning back o the bench and awaiting a response.

“Wh—” Keith began, raising an eyebrow.  He took in the dark features of the man next to him and frowned.  “Were you listening to me?” Keith asked in a bland tone, hoping to fake calmness.

“Nah,” the man replied, crossing his arms behind his head.  “Although you might want to learn how to talk quieter if you don’t want people to hear you.”

Keith frowned once more.  “So,” he began slowly, “you _were_ listening to me.”

The boy’s smile dropped quickly as he thought about Keith’s words for a moment.  “Okay, fair point,” he replied after a moment.  “But _still_ , you get my point.”

“Not really,” Keith murmured.  He looked away again, in hopes of seeing the man he was searching for, then eventually turned back to face the man next to him.  “What’s your name, anyway?”

“Lance,” the boy said with a wink.  Keith looked him up and down once more, then nodded awkwardly.

“Keith,” Keith replied, clearing his throat.  He began to look away when he felt Lance’s arm slip behind him on the bench.

“Do you mind?” he asked, scooting further away from Lance.  Lance simply rolled his eyes and scooted closer to Keith, smiling at him from under his eyebrows.

“Ah, c’mon, tough guy,” Lance teased.  “Lighten up.  You’ve looked tense ever since you sat down.  Which, come to think of it, I was meaning to ask you about.”

“What do you mean?” Keith replied, his irritation with Lance apparent in his tone.

“You know what I mean,” Lance replied, wrapping his arm around Keith’s shoulder and pulling him to his side.  “Who are you waiting for?  You have to be waiting for _something_.  Who’s the lucky lady?”

Keith shrugged Lance off and stood abruptly, straightening out his gray shirt.  “Look, I’m not waiting for a girl,” Keith snapped, looking down at Lance.  “Now, if you’ll excuse me…”

“Suit yourself,” Lance called as Keith began to turn and walk away from the bench.  He rolled his eyes, quickening his pace as he hustled away.  He had to admit, Lance was right in every aspect.  He _was_ there for someone—just not a girl—and he was most definitely nervous.  And, of course, he did invite Lance to strike up a conversation by talking to himself.  But still!  Who was this stranger and why did he have any right to interrupt his life like that?

Keith couldn’t stop thinking about it the entire walk to his apartment, and once he arrived, he lied on his bed and groaned.  If anything, Lance had done him good.  Keith frowned as he thought of the man he had been waiting to catch sight of again in the park.  He knew there was no use in trying to stalk a potential love interest, but what other options did he have?  He couldn’t just go out and flirt—Lance had definitely proved that.  So what, exactly, _could_ he do?

He rolled over onto his stomach and groaned again, pushing his face into his pillow.  Whatever decision he needed to make, he would make it tomorrow.

 

 

Tomorrow came and went.  So did the next day, and the day after that.  After three days of avoiding the park and anything to do with the attractive stranger and Lance, curiosity finally overcame Keith.  After he got off of work, he walked down to the park, unsure exactly of where he would be going.

He eventually found himself nearing his usual park bench and began taking in his surroundings, partially to look for the handsome stranger, and partially to distress himself.  He glanced at the surrounding playground, trees, bushes—and stopped dead in his tracks when he saw his bench.

“You have _got_ to be kidding me,” he muttered as he took in Lance, who was sitting arrogantly and smiling up at him.

“Hey there, buddy,” he crooned.  “I hoped you’d come back here.”

Keith couldn’t fault Lance there.  Wasn’t that what he had been doing the past week himself?  He grudgingly sat down next to Lance, gritting his teeth to keep from blurting out an insult.

“So,” Lance began, “what brings you back to this neck of the woods?   Still looking out for someone?”

“No,” Keith lied, though he was sure his shaky tone gave him away.  Again, he gritted his teeth.  Lance laughed before continuing.

“Well,” he said, turning to face Keith, “I could always help you get your mind off of what’s bothering you, if you’d like.”

Keith stared at him for a long moment.  “What does that even _mean_?” Keith asked.  “You’re so cryptic.”

“Oh, relax,” Lance replied, and in one fluid moment, he was standing and had pulled Keith up next to him.  “C’mon, I’ve got something to show ya.”


End file.
